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Hong Kong children have grown taller and heavier, probably due to better nutrition and improved socioeconomic factors: study
- Median height for 18-year-olds of both sexes up by about 2cm, with weight increases also recorded
- Research figures will be used to revise height and weight charts for children last updated in 1993
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Hong Kong children have grown taller and heavier over the last 30 years, probably due to better nutrition and improved socioeconomic conditions, a major study has found.
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Researchers from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the University of Hong Kong, and the Department of Health on Monday also revealed a new growth chart to track the physical development of youngsters based on their findings and which would be introduced in public hospitals by the end of the year.
“When it comes to height and weight, contemporary children are heavier and taller than [before],” Dr Thomas Chung Wai-hung, a consultant in community medicine at the Department of Health, said.
“Having analysed the data we have collected … it is our opinion that the 1993 charts are no longer appropriate for monitoring the growth trend of Hong Kong children.”
The study, which started its first phase in February 2019, collected growth statistics from more than 21,000 children and adolescents across Hong Kong.
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